June 2004 President's Corner

Bill Rentz '55, USNAAA Atlanta Chapter President

By the time you read this, the 30^th annual Atlanta Chapter Lobster Fest will be history, and historical it was! The Lobster Fest, started in 1974 by Carl and Marilyn McCallum ’60, serving 84 Lobsters in somebody’s backyard, set a new record. Carl and Mike Herger ‘90 led a crew of busy volunteers in serving 244 guests a total of 370 lobsters fresh from Maine, along with steamed mussels, boiled corn on the cob, salad, rolls, and this year for dessert a specially decorated cake to commemorate the 30^th annual Signature event. Our guest list included eleven future members of the Class of 2008, accompanied by family members, and we even had alumni from the Knoxville and Chattanooga Chapters present. A great time was had by all and our special thanks to Carl and Mike and their crew of volunteers. The Kitchen Queens, complete with tiaras, are looking better every year and are even more efficient.

This has been an emotionally charged period for a lot of us graduates and veterans. First of all, Memorial Day was observed, and the Class of 2004 entered the service of our country, 990 strong (779 Navy Ensigns, 190 Marines, 3 Air Force, 2 Army, 1 Coast Guard, and 11 foreign nationals). We welcome them as alumni and wish them Godspeed in their careers and adventures.

To emphasize further Athletic Director Chet Gladchuk’s talk to us last Spring about excellence in Navy Sports, many of us got to watch on national television the Navy Lacrosse team play for the NCAA championship versus Syracuse at Baltimore’s Ravens stadium. Navy lost by 1 goal, but gained national recognition for another outstanding season.

The World War II Memorial was dedicated in Washington, DC, and the 60^th anniversary of the landing at Normandy was observed. We have several Chapter members who were on active duty at that time and we salute you and honor you for your service as part of the greatest generation, and we appreciate you for risking your lives for the freedoms we enjoy but sometimes take for granted.

Keep checking our great USNAAAA web site for some interesting luncheon speakers this summer. And make it a point to call up and bring a classmate, shipmate, or squadron mate that you haven’t seen lately. We would encourage them to join the Chapter and participate in our great events.

Bill Rentz ’55